Terza madre, La (2007)

User Rating:

5.5/10   

Director:

Dario Argento

Writers:

Jace Anderson (writer)
Dario Argento (writer)

Release Date:

31 October 2007 (Italy)

Genre:

Drama | Fantasy | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

What you see does not exist. What you cannot see is truth.

Plot:

Part three of the "Three Mothers" trilogy which takes place in Rome and has to do with Mater Lachrymarum (The Third Mother).

Plot Keywords:

Alchemy | Sadist | Invisibility | Scarf | Intestines

Cast

Asia Argento	...	Sarah Mandy
Cristian Solimeno	...	Agente Enzo Marchi
Adam James	...	Michael Pierce
Moran Atias	...	Mater Lachrymarum
Valeria Cavalli	...	Marta Colussi
Philippe Leroy	...	Guglielmo De Witt
Daria Nicolodi	...	Elisa Mandy
Coralina Cataldi-Tassoni	...	Giselle Mares
Udo Kier	...	Padre Johannes
Robert Madison	...	Agente Lissoni
Jun Ichikawa	...	Katerina
Tommaso Banfi	...	Padre Milesi
Paolo Stella	...	Julian
Clive Riche	...	Uomo col Cappotto
Massimo Sarchielli	...	Vagabondo

Also Known As:

Exhumed (USA) (working title)
Mother of Tears (USA)
Mother of Tears: The Third Mother (International: English title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong graphic violence and gore, language and some sexuality/nudity.

Runtime:

Canada:98 min (Toronto International Film Festival) | USA:98 min | USA:101 min (unrated version)

Country:

Italy | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Italy:VM14 | UK:18 | USA:R | Germany:18 (uncut) | Australia:R

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Film Commission Torino-Piemonte

Trivia:

The first screening of the film's trailer took place at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. On the same occasion, a restored print of Suspiria (1977) was shown in the Cannes Classics section.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Giselle and Sarah open the urn. The overhead shots shows Giselle handing each item to Sarah. In the side shots Giselle is taking them from Sarah and setting them aside.

Quotes:

Sarah Mandy: I need to find the Mother of Tears!

Movie Connections:

References Phenomena (1985)

Better than most modern 'exploitation' films, but...

The movie started with a big handicap: it was a sequel to not one but two classic horror movies and it was natural that not everybody was going to like it. But, truth is, it is a pretty good movie, although a little flawed. In an age when the revival of exploitation movies is all the rage (see Saw or Hostel for instance) it is a rare treat to see one of the forefathers of European horror movies (Argento) pay his tribute to another one (Fulci), because the movie felt more like something Fulci would have done. The violence is over the top brutal, the sleaze abundant and the plot thin and does not make that much sense. What alienates many viewers is the subtlety of the movie. Although it treads more into the fantasy element of the Mothers mythos, the lightning, the music, the set pieces are not assaulting the senses (unlike, say, Suspria), instead they prove a calm before the storm. And storm it is: we see savage mutilation, sexual torture, cannibalism and all the likes that make most of the modern Hollywood "nasties" pale in comparison. Only the last 15 minutes bring Inferno to mind (and it is only natural) Overall, the movie works adequately, but not perfect. There are some scenes that really do the trick (the chase being the highlight), being eerie or otherworldly, but one too many times the scope of the movie is so large that fails to give a strong impression on the viewer. and the ending... as in the other two movies of the trilogy is week. Overall, as a sequel to Suspiria it fails, but as a stand-alone movie, it is pretty good as a splatter movie with a budget (compared to most contemporary movies in the same category).